Photography by Paul Dishman: Sri Lanka Part 2 - Kandy

Our next hotel showed us that local tour operators Ratnaloka Paradise Tours did not live up to their name and sparked a true entente cordiale. The day started well with trips to the Spice Garden, a government wooden furniture / ornament workshop and a gem museum / shop. Bored me rigid but others liked it and took the chance for a massage too.
Our guide at the Spice Garden went through all of their very expensive products claiming the assorted lotions could cure any disease known to man . One compound of spices he stated was so widely used that we would not see any Sri Lankan wearing glasses as they could cure short sight! Amazingly we thought we could not remember seeing anyone with glasses to prove this theory. Later experiences showed otherwise and maybe we should have thought that poor, unaltered sight might be responsible for their driving habits!

Peter enjoys a massage. Seems they have no spices to protect teeth from tobacco chewing in Sri Lanka

Child labour seemed in plentiful supply at the hard sell wood factory where you could have a teak garden furniture set delivered to the UK for only £4000!

We resisted the urge to buy one of the large elpehants on display as son in law Neil had amused us for hours over his own experiences of doing this whilst on honeymoon last year! We often refer to "the elephant in the room" when visiting him and my daughter down in Farnham!

The gem stones museum showed us a historical reconstruction of a really old gem mine they told us. We later found the modern gem mines were exactly the same though maybe less mechanised! No photos were allowed here for security. Albert raised concerns with management watching us as he sought accomplices out amongst us for a heist, pointing out the security cameras we would need to get past!
After the gem stones museum it was off to our hotel. If you ever see the Riverdale Hotel in Kandy - keep going. The driver stated he`d brought us there as the French had requested a pool and this hotel had one. Inside, ground floor next to the restaurant. After dinner you could five in from your table if you so desired. As we arrived the French highlighted staff fishing out a pilchard or some such dead object which had no doubt escaped from a dinner plate the previous night. Shown to our rooms we found a room with a broken, unlockable door, excrement on the toilet, soiled towels and bed linen and made our displeasure known. As staff took a hammer to our door lock we heard the French group stating that their rooms were dirty and unacceptable - at the same time as Chris and Peter opened their balcony door to watch a family cooking their evening meal on their own balcony a short jump away. In a veritable entente cordiale the whole group gathered luggage, went downstairs and demanded to be moved as the manager drew close to tears and the driver babbled into a phone between cigarettes. Eventuality we were split up with the English going to a beautiful newly built hotel in the hills and the French going to a town based one under construction which was clean if incomplete.

The hills from our changed hotel balcony at the Highland Kandy

Next day after initial confusion when the driver changed his story from us all staying at the French hotel the next night to us going to another we set off for the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. A highlight for us this was marvellous to see and get up close to these gorgeous animals.

Loved this baby elephant chasing a wild dog that I hurriedly caught in shot

Returning from the orphanage we were booked into the sumptuous Grand Kandyan hotel which was way beyond price levels we had paid for in our bargain break and was no doubt an attempt to get back onside by the driver! Wonderful food and facilities - so little time to enjoy them as our programme continued with a dance/ cultural show and visit to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth of Buddha

"What do I have to do to get them to look at me?"

Sunset at the lake near the Temple of the Sacred Tooth

The tooth of Buddha was brought here by Princess Hemamali and Prince Dantha, It is held that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. Kandy was the last capital of the Sri Lankan kings and is a world heritage site mainly due to the temple.

As for the prince and princess they continue to work at the temple as human statues for the tourists ;-)

Our guide at the temple was hilarious. A little old man, toothless through tobacco chewing as usual, who rattled on about the temple with us understanding one word in three. As he shoved us through the crowds shouting "come , come" it was hard to keep up. At the end of the tour he took us back to our bus ... and got us lost. He decided to call the driver but could only see the numbers with the screen pressed up against his good eye. Seems he had not been taking the spices curing poor vision! I`d have taken a cruel photo but could not steady my camera as , lost as we were, we were laughing so much! Bus found we had a glorious, hot meal at the Grand Kandyan which was no doubt catering for tourists.

Next morning off to the hills and the tea plantations - breathtaking scenery!

We didn`t buy any tea at the factory as it seemed ludicrously expensive - certainly compared to our own favourite Yorkshire tea. Didn`t taste as good either - you just cannot beat the taste of tea blended from plants grown on the slopes of the Yorkshire Dales!

It was here that I realised who Marie-Claude reminded me of as she tried to take an Ipad picture of the group and sought Gerard`s help in fixing a problem. We had met the French Anne and Art in Sri Lanka - what are the chances!

Roadside shops abound , selling little to no-one it seemed

As we drove on we saw more roadside temples - whether Buddhist or Hindu.

Found out later this was little Adams Peak

Next stop the beautiful Rawana Waterfall - just a short way from our next surprise hotel!

This lady showered, washed her hair in the fall for the audience

Deserted roadside shops

So many murals at this hotel

The Ella Mount Heaven hotel was our next stay but how strange. Seemingly build one room at the time and hanging on the side of the mountain with fabulous views of the peaks it was bizarre with it`s crazy murals and rooms. Whilst everyone else seemed happy we were less so with our room some three steep flights of stairs down the mountain which the luggage boy found difficult going with 2 big cases. Opening the room door I immediately felt I was Batman - our room was a cave. With one and a half walls made of the mountain side and just one window painted out to disguise the view of the next room being built it was dark and a little damp smelling. A complaint to the manager, ignoring our guide who was busy having another cigarette, we were moved to a lovely room with a fantastic view of the hills. True it had an odd mural or two around but what the hell! Our next surprise was dinner , being advised that there would not be the usual buffet but instead a Valentine`s meal with flowers for the ladies and chocolates for the men. Shoud have been a lovely meal on appearance but largely stone cold. Meals out often seemed tepid or warm out with Chris and Peter`s theory being it was because Sri Lankans eat with their fingers and could not cope with hot food eaten such. The hotel seemed one big folly for an owner who sat looking like a guru with his young bride / girlfriend feeding each other as they watched their empire in front of them. Such a beautiful site and such a criminal way of developing a building!

Our new room with mural featuring a working outside light!

The next day we set off to Ratnapura glimpsing tea pickers who smiled for our shots along the way and seeing more temples as we drove. By now we were either used to the driving or the ddriver had improved as he was less stressed with timings.